hitting the Upper Kern-fishing and shooting-UPDATE W?PICS and details

[porky]

My buddy and I are hitting up the kern on Thursday- above Kernville to the Johnsondale bridge-Its Sequoia National Forest-I assume I'm good to carry while fishing in that area, right?

Also-any spots I should check out up there?

should we take the 14 in or do the Bakersfield route?

Any spots to pull over and shoot on the way there or back that aren't too far off the road-395 or 14?
Coming back Friday afternoon - just a dusk fish and morning fish on Friday-then back to L.A.

[zerohour714]

I haven't fished this early in the season but usually do well with Nightcrawlers and Salmon eggs with a size12 hook and a couple of splitshot during the summer months. As far as shooting... Ive been told there is no target shooting and you must be in "pursuit of game" if you are to shoot. there is a ton of land up there and most is REAL steep and rocky.

[pennstater]

Fishing should be good, as far as shooting, call the Lake Isabella Ranger station, you're in that "Condor zone", there could be restrictions.
Here's the #: [760] 379-5646
Just for plinking, check just south of Hwy 178 off of Hwy 14 to the west, Horse Cyn I believe. Good luck.

[Fjold]

The water up there is fast and muddy right now, the latest snow is running off. Try the red salmon eggs because of their brighter colors.

[porky]

Yep!

Thanks for the tips everyone keep em coming!

The only section that is open right now is that 20 miles above Kernville-
I have never been there but the imges look awesome!

A good day fishing...

I use moslty lures but my buddy will be flylining nightcrawlers and salmon eggs- maybe some pink powerbait-

I AM worried above the water temps and clarity -so I hope we are lucky-

Some say you can plink practically anywhere- but I will call the ranger station and update today
Thanks again all!

[JasonM]

Please let us know how it goes! I'm thinking of taking my family up there for my kids' spring break.

[Smokinjoe101]

I was up in Kernville on Monday water look clear and slow saw several people fly fishing on the stretch in town in front of the park with one guy catching an alper looked to be a 3 or 4 pounder.

sj

[porky]

UPDATE-

I called Headquarters Ranger Station- GREAT NEWS!

Steve says: There are all kinds of great places to shoot up on the kern . Come on in and I'll point out some great spots!

Thank you!

So - I am loading up on fishing equipment AND GUNS!!!!

Bringing my new (to me) shotty, some 9mms, 1911s and perhaps a 22 as well!

Pics to come leaving as soon as I can play hooky from my job- tomorrow a.m.

[elevated]

if you can get them from a pet shop tomorrow crickets always work for me. small hook and the tiniest split shot you can find so that the cricket and the weight can move in the river...

[pennstater]

Hit 'em with "steak and eggs", better known as a night crawler hit with some air, a marshmellow and some stinky garlic juice. Deadly combo in the Sierra"s.
Can't wait for the pix.

[porky]

Thanks for the fishing tips- crickets -good idea-

Steak and eggs? lol! Never heard of it but sounds deadly! I'll suggest it to my buddy!

[porky]

So- I am back from an overnighter out at the Upper Kern! After calling the ranger station, I packed up a couple of poles and several guns. My buddy and I wanted to get out of town and scout out the area for future trips.

We had never been there, so it was a bit of an overdue adventure- we had both been, at one time or another, to most parts of the Sierras, but it was funny that neither of us had been to the Kern. I skipped out on my afternoon classes and we headed up the Grapevine to Bakersfield and then to the 178.

The ride up the canyon was pretty spectacular and the weather was just clearing from the rain on Wednesday night. When we got to the Kernville area, we headed directly to the ranger station. They set us up with FS maps and the very helpful front desk person pointed out several spots where we could camp AND shoot.

It was REALLY refreshing to have such a gun friendly attitude prevail in the Kern. There was ammo and hunting gear available at the market; it was wonderful- full Disneyland for men!

We headed up the road toward Headquarters campground, but we ended up off the road. We made our own campsite and got in some fishing and I DID let fly with my new (to me) Mossy 500 combo.





After owning a Big 5 combo for a year or so and being satisfied with it for the price I paid, I couldn't help but feel it was not as solid FEELING as I would like- this gun was purchased AFTER they had started using the Maverick parts. I never got around to doing the conversion and I have to admit I was not as happy as I could be. It functioned well, so I had no real gripe with it.

When I had the chance to purchase and older model 500 combo, I immediately bought it -$175! It was beat up, but the wood furniture was beautiful to me, and when I racked it- it made a loud and sweet click that bespoke of its use and experience-I was sold!

The late afternoon fishing never heated up for us, so I headed up a canyon with my shotty in tow. I really wanted to hear it go BOOM! I was not disappointed and it felt and functioned like an entirely differently weapon next to the more modern Big 5 version.

I recommend buying these older combos over the Big 5 combos and even though the fishing was poor, the Kern itself was magnificent! We settled in with dinner and a nice bottle of whiskey and had a great night under the stars-
More pics and the rest of the story to come-

[pennstater]

Awesome! Good looking camp set-up. Where abouts is that? Looks like you could walk right out of camp and hunt. The upper Kern is NICE.

[pennstater]

Also, was the fire damage still visible along the road going up? It certainly was last Oct when we went up for D-8.

[porky]

We were up around Ant Canyon-there are several FS roads that branch off the road though I'm told the best FS roads are on the branch of the road east of Johnsondale.

Yep- the Fire Damage is still very visible but it has that new Spring growth coming up all around it so its still beautiful.

More pics and the rest of the story to come!

More guns and yes, even a fish pic!